When You Reach Me

When You Reach Me

Written by: Rebecca Stead

Published by Wendy Lamb Books in 2009.

Newbery Medal Winner in 2010.

Addictive, Futuristic, Intriguing, Memorable, Unexpected

Summary:
This story is about a girl, Miranda, who looses her best friend, Sal, after he is punched in the stomach by some kid, Marcus. She then starts to get letters sent to her. They tell her what will happen in the future, and then the things do occur. She is concerned and confused by these letters, but does not tell anyone about them. Through a long series of events with an unexpected ending, the letters make sense and Miranda and Sal become friends again.

Reading Level:
Lexile Measure: 750L
Grade Level Equivalent: 4.6
Interest Level: Grades 6-8

Electronic Resources:
Rebecca Stead Website
This link leads to Rebecca Stead's website. It tells her how to contact her, has a link to her blog, has other books she has written, gives blurbs about her books and what awards they have won, and leads to a site where you can buy educator guides. This link would be useful for students who are interested in learning about other books she has written and useful for teachers who want and are willing to buy educator guides.

Rebecca Stead Talks
This link leads to a youtube video of Rebecca Stead talking about the book. First she gives a summary, then she talks about an author she met and liked, then she talks about how she writes, then she talks about the setting and why it was set in NYC, finally she talks about her favorite places in NYC. This would be useful to students who want to learn more about the author and her thought process as she writes.

Teaching Suggestions:
Teachers can use this story to show students a writing that is not realistic fiction.

Suggested Delivery:
I would have students read this book independently. This book is an easy read with easy to understand concepts. Any difficult concepts are explained thoroughly.

Key Vocabulary:
Theories, Gagged, Unpredictable, Perspective, Teleportation, Hypnotizing

Reading Strategies:

Before Reading:
Have students talk about the quote by Albert Einstein that is in the beginning of the book. What do they think it means? How do they think it will relate to the book based on the back cover summary?

During Reading:
Have students make predictions throughout the book. Have them fix predictions as they learn new information and make new predictions as they continue to read.

After Reading:
Have students discuss the ending of the story and how it related to topic throughout the story. Did they notice the foreshadowing as they read?

Writing Activity:
Have students write about a time in there life where one event lead to a bunch of other events. Relate it back to the story and how the one punch lead to the almost death of Sal and the actual death of the laughing man.